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For Thanksgiving, my brother-in-law, his wife, and a few cousins drove from Utah to California to visit family for the holiday. As they were driving back to Utah the following Sunday, the weather turned sour. It wasn’t snowing heavily – just light rain and sleet, according to my brother-in-law – but that didn’t stop a wreck from happening 80 miles away from their home.

Fortunately they weren't involved, but traffic was at a standstill. They would later discover that a semi-truck had jackknifed on the freeway, blocking all lanes. My brother-in-law took a side road – along with everyone else on the freeway – in order to get around the accident. As it turned out, traffic slowed to a crawl – and then full on stop – on that road as well. They moved six miles in an hour and a half. It was 8:00 at night, and they had work and school the next day.

Later, they learned what had caused the stoppage on the access road – another semi-truck had jackknifed.

Such experiences can be very frustrating. Fortunately, they all made it back safe and sound. The only casualty was a bit of sanity and some much needed sleep. But they’re alright, and that’s what matters.

Winter has arrived here in Utah, and if it hasn’t arrived for you yet, it could very soon.

We talk a lot about preparing your home and food storage for emergencies and disasters (which also includes winter), but today we’d like to help you get your car ready for winter driving conditions.

First off, how’s your car’s emergency kit? Just like in your home, your car should be prepared with the essentials, just in case you slide off the road or are otherwise stranded in the cold. Ready.gov has a list of necessary items for your car’s kit. Some of those include the following:

Shovel

Windshield scraper

Flashlight

Water

Snack food

Blankets and warm clothing

Road salt/sand

Booster cables

These are some of the basic necessities that need to go with you wherever you travel throughout the winter. Of course, you may have special circumstances and needs which you should prepare for as well, such as medications, pet supplies, or other such items.

Thinking back on the experience of my brother-in-law, what might have happened if they had things not worked out for them? My first thought is gas.

What would their trip home have been like if their gas tank had been low going into that traffic jam? During a chilly winter night, they could have been stuck without heat. Blankets, hats, mittens, and other warm clothing would have been a very welcomed resource in that situation. Fortunately, their gas tank was full enough until they could reach the next town (the towns are spread out quite far in the area in which they were stuck, so things could have been a lot worse).

If they had been stuck on the road, snacks and water would not only do wonders for their morale, but help keep them hydrated, alert, and functioning properly in the event they needed more than just corn ships. Flashlights would have been useful in checking under the hood in case of car trouble (or having light by which passengers could read while they wait). A traffic jam is one thing. Sliding off the road in the middle of nowhere and having to wait for help to arrive would certainly require an emergency stash of gear.

And the list goes on.

You see, we never can plan for disasters (including two jackknifed trucks blocking two roads on one trip). That’s why it’s so important to have emergency gear and supplies in your car. The example scenarios above are only meant to give a hint of what could have been – the possibilities of what could have happened are many.

Last week stank. One daughter had her tonsils removed Monday. All of the rest of my family – including me – were suffering through nasty colds. And my husband’s been out of town. I could barely leave the house.

To feed my family, I relied on food storage, especially products like freeze-dried beef stew and freeze-dried vegetables that were fast and easy to cook.

This TV news story, from a Houston ABC affiliate, said freeze-dried food isn’t just for natural disasters or astronauts anymore. It’s also showing up in everyday cooking, as people discover that freeze-dried foods are convenient and save money.

Preparing a freeze-dried meal takes less time than going out to a restaurant or ordering something in. It also costs less than a restaurant meal – even a fast-food one.

Beef Stroganoff

It’s fast. Add boiling water to a freeze-dried meal pouch, stir a couple of times, and 10 minutes later, dinner’s ready. As more people have discovered freeze-dried foods, the variety of food available has increased too.

"Basically, anything that you would normally cook can be freeze dried," Alissa Rumsey, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told ABC 13.

Freeze-dried ingredients are already washed and cut, so you don’t have to do it yourself. I’ve tossed reconstituted freeze-dried hash browns into a recipe that called for potatoes. I’ve done the same for freeze-dried corn.

Like other prepared foods, freeze-dried food is more expensive than canned or fresh food. However, it can still reduce your food budget, not just your dining-out budget.

American families throw away about a quarter of the food and drinks they buy, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. That costs a family of four an estimated $1,365 to $2,275 annually.

The NRDC attributes much of this loss to factors like poor planning, spoiling and waste from past sell-buy dates.

Freeze-dried food can help with all these issues.

Chicken Teriyaki

You should be rotating food storage anyway. So, plan meals using food storage items, then replace them as they get used up. This will help reduce the hit to the wallet from food waste. It will also allow you to spread out food storage shopping throughout the year, so you can buy items when they’re on sale, instead of when you run out.

Have you ever lost a zucchini or bunch of spinach in the refrigerator? And discovered it three weeks later, a soggy, mildewed blob?

Freeze-dried vegetables and fruit last longer, so they’re less likely to spoil than fresh ones. If you’re keeping more of the food you buy, because it doesn’t spoil, you’re saving money.

Freeze-dried food has a much longer shelf life than canned or frozen food – 25 years and more, if left unopened. I recently cleaned out my food storage and removed some really out-of-date cans. (2013, anyone?) What a waste of food and money. I could have bought freeze-dried food that would still be good.

Freeze-dried foods take some practice. The first time I tried tossing reconstituted freeze-dried hash browns into a casserole, they came out soggy. I learned if I fry them just a bit before I toss them in, they hold together more like fresh potatoes. Also, different brands have slightly different flavors. So experiment. In the long run, you’ll save time and money.

During election years, it’s common for people to amp up their preparedness, and the 2016 presidential election has been no different. People from around the country began stockpiling food before Election Day even rolled around. According to NBC News, sales were up 300% for one preparedness company. This was most likely due to fears of a Clinton victory on November 8, according to the vice president at Blue Chip Group Inc.

But a Trump win didn’t relinquish the need to prepare. On the contrary, we saw a spike in sales of year supplies the very day after the election. Combos, kits, and water storage are also selling With a new president taking office in January, the future is again uncertain. Fortunately, being prepared is a practical way to counter those feelings of uncertainty.

Many people saw the ugly politicking of the 2016 presidential election and decided it was about time they started building up their emergency prep. But one man from Cincinnati was well ahead of the game. Dan O’Hara has been stocking up on food, water, and gear for years, and even has an underground storage room where he keeps it all. He has freeze-dried food, garden seeds, and even his own freeze dryer. The reason? To help sustain his family for an extended period of time in case of emergency.

And a new president is only one of the many reasons to prepare.

Natural disasters, economic crisis, job loss, civil unrest, and even injury can make it difficult to acquire the necessary food and gear to see you through the hard times. O’Hara is even prepared for a nuclear disaster. But is he just a crazy prepper?

Prepper, yes; crazy, no.

An example of our Variety Year Supply.

O’Hara says he and other everyday people prepare so that when something bad does happen, they won’t have to rely on others for help. Self-sufficiency is an important aspect of preparing. With preparedness comes a sense of hope and comfort, both during times of crisis and times of calm. During an emergency, waiting for help could potentially take days or even weeks. Having the food, water, and gear necessary to get through anything – not just the apocalypse – is a big boon for anyone.

While the recent elections have sown the seed of fear and uncertainty throughout the nation, this is the perfect time to start preparing with emergency food. If you’ve already started, then use this moment in history to build it up to last you even longer. You never know what crisis may enter your life, so the more prep you have, the better off you’ll be.

But don’t just work on your prep because of the elections. Work on your prep because it is insurance for a safe and comfortable future, regardless of emergency that strikes the nation, your community, or even your personal life.